Wrong Spot At Right Time (Daily News-Record)

Bridgewater College’s Desmond Jalloh was out of position last weekend when he made the game-saving play against Ferrum.

Daily News-Record - By Jeremy Cothran

BRIDGEWATER — It’s a good thing Desmond Jalloh made the game-saving play in Bridgewater College’s 30-27 overtime defeat of Ferrum on Saturday.

Otherwise, he would have had to face an unhappy coaching staff afterward.

The Eagles’ starting safety revealed Tuesday that he was out of position when he tipped away Panthers quarterback Jermaine Pitts’ last-gasp pass.

Originally, the play called for Jalloh to cover Ferrum tight end Chris Silk, who was left wide open in the corner of the end zone. The junior from Roanoke instead made a decision on the fly to pressure Pitts, who had rolled out on play-action, and leapt high in the air to knock down his pass.

"Well, to be quite honest," Jalloh said with a sly smile, "I wasn’t quite in the right spot. We anticipated a load option [play] and I made a read on the fake handoff. [Pitts] sold it really well. He rolled out, I anticipated and sprinted out towards him."

It was far from the game’s only defensive miscue after the Panthers rushed for 493 yards.

"We messed up so many times," BC linebacker Brandon Borst said. "But I guess if you’re going to make a mistake, why not win the game?"

Jalloh’s performance Saturday (14 tackles, one pass defense) was good enough to earn him the Old Dominion Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Week award. It also earned him plenty of praise from Eagles coach Michael Clark.

"When we grade players," Clark said after practice Tuesday, "we don’t count an aggressive mistake that leads to a successful play. It was a missed assignment, but it was a big play."

After examining the play on film, both Clark and Jalloh didn’t consider the error as egregious as it might have been Saturday. The Eagles’ coach said because of the intense pressure Jalloh was bringing on Pitts, the Panthers’ QB would have had a hard time throwing over the safety’s large frame (6-foot-1, 195 pounds) in order to accurately complete the pass.

"His arm strength wasn’t good enough," Jalloh said. "Plus, our cornerback Earl Chapman was in the area. He’s got real good closing speed. He would have intercepted it or knocked it down."

Still, the Ferrum game was a reality check for an Eagles defense that started the season with two straight shutouts. Jalloh said many of the Panthers’ players were more than happy to point out that fact after scoring their first touchdown in the opening quarter.

But, aside from a few bruised egos, the safety said BC’s defense remains confident, despite struggling to contain the Panthers’ wishbone and zone-read option attack.

"We’ve still got our swagger. We drink a bottle of swagger juice before every game," Jalloh said. "Plus, we’re not going to face an offense like that again."

Not every Eagle would agree.

BC held a physical practice in full pads Tuesday, leading to a few instances of flared tempers and trash talking. After the day’s last play, linebacker Craig Smith – who himself made two game-saving tackles – took off his helmet and verbally laced into his teammates.

"We ain’t that damn good," the senior captain said. "Especially when some team runs for 400-something yards on us."

Jalloh thinks the Eagles’ upcoming game against first-year varsity program LaGrange on Saturday is the chance to re-establish their toughness. The Panthers are averaging a puny 2.3 points and 84.3 yards per game.

And with Bridgewater – ranked No. 8 in Division III -- about to make the transition to the chuck-it-up passing offenses of the ODAC, the Eagles need to get matters sorted out quickly.

"We want to make our defense a no-fly zone," Jalloh said. "If you’re going to come out with that air attack, we want to show that it’s not acceptable."

The Cave Springs High School graduate did admit that there are "fundamental things" the Eagles need to fix, and while he’s still got his confidence, there was a bit of a wake-up call.

"It brought us back to reality," Jalloh said. "Ferrum was a hungry team, and the teams we’re going to play are only going to get hungrier. But they’re chasing us, and we’re chasing championships."